The Custer County Search and Rescue Unit was alerted Thursday evening to a delayed hiker whose planned route was to traverse Crestone Peak to Crestone Needle.
Coordinates placed the hiker in Saguache County and Custer County SAR was in charge of the operation. The 66-year-old man had climbed to the top of Crestone Peak, crossed over to Crestone Needle, and was descending when he presumably went off-trail. Family members reported that his Garmin device showed a location that had not changed for several hours.
A vehicle with a Nebraska license plate belonging to the group was spotted by SAR personnel at the trailhead in Custer County on Thursday evening. Custer County SAR deployed teams at 3:30 a.m. Friday and the operation ended when all ground personnel left the field at 10:30 p.m.
Weather conditions complicated both ground and aerial searches throughout the day. The Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control (DFPC) Cañon Helitack was able to conduct an aerial search after 2 p.m. and visually confirmed the hiker’s location at an elevation of 13,371 feet adjacent to a 2021 rescue site.
A team of two technical mountaineers, part of eight field personnel, managed to reach the site. The DFPC’s Cañon Helitack aircraft was equipped with a rope to transport external loads, deliver equipment to the rescue teams on site and recover the victim.
As darkness quickly fell and weather conditions worsened again, the two rescuers were rescued from the technically difficult terrain by a UH-60 Blackhawk of the Colorado Army National Guard after a ground operation lasting more than 16 hours. Other SAR employees left the area on foot.
During this operation, the rescue teams were confronted with wet, loose stones, thick fog, occasional heavy rain showers and steady winds with speeds between 32 and 48 km/h, sometimes over 65 km/h.
Custer County Search and Rescue recommends careful route finding and navigation. The best way to do this is to carefully descend the same route you ascended. This group’s Garmin device provided valuable clues that helped locate and recover the person.
A common denominator on Crestone Needle missions is climbers going off-route while descending the South Face from 13,400 feet and below, highlighting the extreme importance of navigating and staying on route to avoid falling off cliffs and suffering fatal falls.
The members of the Custer County Volunteer Search and Rescue organization extend their deepest condolences to the family and friends of the deceased.
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